Numerous books are continually developed with features designed to attract the interest of children. For example, books have been developed including interactive stickers, while other books include sound or light generators to give visual or auditory interactions. Books have been given irregular shapes, i.e., non-rectangular shapes, so as to resemble various symbols, characters or animals. Books have included a variety of paper pop-up or pull-out illustrations or figures to attract and interest the child. Still other books have incorporated a non-cellulosic toy or figurine in some fashion within the confines of the book.
Among the books including three-dimensional figurines are U.S. Pat. No. 4,176,473 wherein a book includes one or more three-dimensional figures frictionally held within cut-outs within a page or pages of the book. U.S. Pat. No. 4,365,438 included a toy such as a toy vehicle together with the book, the toy capable of occupying a cut-out region within multiple pages of the book for storage and/or display.
Another previous book design including an object within the spine of the book was developed by Ruschak et al. and included a ball within a spherical cutout of a book spine and a piece of cheese within a rectangular cutout of a book spine.
Despite all the prior variations in books including three dimensional figurines, other variations are continually sought, e.g., to help promote the use and reading of children's books, or to serve as an appealing advertisement or promotion.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a book structure or assembly including a three-dimensional figurine attached at the spine of the book.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a book structure or assembly including a three-dimensional figurine attached at the spine of the book with graphic printing cooperatively arranged to provide a storyline involving the figurine.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a book structure or assembly including a three-dimensional figurine attached at the spine of the book, the figurine characterized as having non-symmetrical features, and the book structure including a cut-out region at the spine configured for cooperative arrangement with the figurine.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a promotional article including a three-dimensional figurine attached at the spine of the promotional article.